Salve for a Bloody Rose  Chapter 1
by cartoonpsycho888999
Summary: LucyxNana lemon! Lucy has returned from her ordeal on the bridge and hopes to make amends with Nana after a long coma. Their twisted relationship develops into a break out of mutual sexual attraction. How will this affect everybody? Warning.semiuber lemon
1. Chapter 1

Elfen Lied Fan Fiction- Type: Yuri ( with Kouta the nosebleeder)

It had been several months after the 'incident'. The incident being the fact that Lucy was almost shot to a pulp by a mass of special forces soldiers. The situation had traumatized Lucy in a good way and a bad way. The 'good way' being that her temperament to kill and maim was pretty much withered away, and the 'bad way' being that 'Nyuu' did not exist anymore.

At least not in those few days.

Lucy's mind was quite scrambled after have 5 plus bullets pumped into her body. Her description to Kouta was ' It felt like _karma.'_ Kouta knew exactly what she meant. She meant that good old karma was repaying her for all the people she had slaughtered. _Five _bullets into her chest, head, and lower body was _quite _the retribution. Lucy lay in a coma for several days after she stumbled to the Kaede Inn, riddled with angry looking holes in her body and covering the floor in a viscous new coat of red paint. Due to the fact that one of her horns had been shot off, her vectors were no longer as potent as they were before. They had approximately (.5?) meters detracted from their original reach, making them only ¾ as useful as before.

Make no mistake, she still kept her homicidal and vitriol covered comments intact, but she just didn't use them as much. Furthermore, the bullets that narrowly missed the old noggin revealed...strange feelings. Feelings that she wanted kept to _herself _and herself alone.

She felt herself attracted to Nana. _Sexually _attracted to be sure. The lithe little diclonius had always been sort of an _annoyance _to her former self. A _crack in the road_ if you should say so. Either the bullets had scrambled her mind to turn bisexual, or it was just _one _of those hidden psychological scars that never _really _went away. Besides, she never really had a mother figure in her life. This could have possibly caused a strange variation of the Oedipus Complex, causing her mind to subconsciously turn over to Nana for support.

No. She couldn't think these things. She was attracted to _Kouta_ and _Kouta _alone. Besides, what about the little tryst they shared on the steps of the cemetery? Did that mean nothing? Well, that couldn't be helped now. She was now attracted to both Nana _and _Kouta. She shook her head quickly to clear her mind of these dirty thoughts. The scarlet haired diclonius staggered up from her _futon_ and walked to the chair near the mirror, peering at the gaunt but still pretty reflection that stared back at her. The image in the mirror itself questioned Lucy's existence in the world.

'Am I just a test subject that escaped from it's cage? Do I even have a purpose in this world _other _than to be scorned by humans?' Lucy peered even deeper into her blood red eyes, hoping for some purchase from those two glowing orbs. Staring at herself wasn't going to help. That was only for ' 'sapiens'. Lucy laughed inwardly at the joke. Another confined diclonius shared the joke with her when the two met on a rare occasion when they were allowed to socialize in a metal room. Only 'sapiens indulge in self pity. _She _was a diclonius. She did not cry on the basis of being rejected. The humans called that 'emo'. She preferred it as 'sapiens. Swinging her creamy legs into a cross legged position, Lucy rubbed the wound on her head. The gang had taken _a lot _of trouble to remove the bullet. Fortunately, the blood loss was not _too _much, and only caused her a fainting now and then. At least it didn't cause her to go 'poof' and transform into a retard like Nyuu. That was _one _thing she was glad about. The stupid delinquent was gone for good. Maybe the bullet bashed a part of her brain back in order, who knows?

Another disturbing image of Nana popped into her head. It was the day she plucked off Nana's appendages like a child with a Daddy Longlegs. Nana's horrifying squeals pierced her mind. At this rate, the girl would never even _think _of even _liking _her. She had tolerated Lucy in Kaede Inn just for the sole fact that she had a 'Nyuu' side. For Pete's sake, she had _ripped off _her _limbs._ Even when the poor diclonius was trying to pathetically crawl away. Lucy shook her head in disgust at herself.

What was she _thinking? _Maybe it was the fact that she did _not _want to go back to the research place. Maybe she had taken that desperate anger and turned it on poor Nana, (Who was now currently giggling outside her door while eating dinner.) Like she said herself. Being plunked five times by bullets was 'karma'. She probably deserved all of those bits of lead in her body...

'Nyuu chan, here's your dinner, I-

Nana stopped dead in the room when her gaze met _Lucy's._ During her days when she was conscious, she had spent most of the time staring quietly at the garden in the backyard or just staring at _Wanta._ Nana couldn't really tell if this docile diclonius was either Nyuu or Lucy.

_Now she knew._ Lucy's eyes had lost some of their homicidal glint, but it still scared the living shit out of Nana. Nana put down the plate of food quietly and stood wringing her hands nervously, trying to think of something to say to her 'amputation nurse' She muttered something about hoping _Lucy _chan was okay and started to step out of the room when Lucy suddenly spouted out, ' Wait!'

Nana spun on her heel and glared at her 'amputation nurse' She still hadn't forgiven the older diclonius for ripping off her legs and arms. She _still _had trouble controlling those prosthetic limbs. She even misplaced them every once in a while...

Still, she couldnt help but feel a little bit of- of what was that word called? _Sexual attraction?_ Whenever she laid eyes on Lucy. Her long, lithe legs, her perfectly proportioned bust, her shiny red hair...Nana always had a little bit of an attraction to 'bad' people. Maybe it was a contradiction to her own sweet nature. Maybe it was a glitch in her creation . Whatever it was, her own torturer was also her target of infatuation. Being quite naive, Nana didn't really know about human reproduction, so she assumed being attracted to the same sex was something _all _humans did every once in a while. Her gaze softened at Lucy as the diclonius' eyes started to look sorrowful.

'Nana chan, I'm...I'm really sorry for what I did to you at the cemetery. I-I don't know what I could say to relieve your pain, but-'

Nana was genuinely surprised at this sudden change in Lucy's character. _Lucy apologizing? _Had the world gone mad? Her naive little mind tried to grasp the concept of Lucy being _contrite. _The shock was a little too much for Nana. She collapsed to her knees and whispered in a pathetic little voice, ' You _mean it?'_ Lucy nodded her head as tears started to roll down her cheeks. Her cold, assertive self didn't bother to keep her grasp on Lucy anymore. The child Lucy was back. All the pain and torment that she endured did not come out as bloody homicidal rages. It just poured out with pure, clean tears. All the people she killed...all the people she hurt...the one person she regretted hurting the most was Kouta. Nana came in at about the 1.1 spot. She couldn't believe that she actually had the heart to _rip off _an innocent 13 year old Diclonius limbs in cold blood. Althought Nanas cheerful and bubbly personality remained intact, it was also the factor that ripped through Lucys heart the most. She _still _managed to stay like that even when she became a quadriplegic! She _still _managed to remain civil to Lucy and _live _with her! Oh, how Lucy hated herself for her actions...

Lucy was almost doubled over in a ball sobbing her heart out. The door was closed, so Kouta and the rest of the group couldn't really hear her through the din. She was saying sorry over and over again in hoarse whispers, prompting Nana to cautiously walk over and wrap her arm around Lucy. As Nana slowly turned her arm wrap into a full fledged huddle over the shaking diclonius, a lot of voices conflicted in her head too. One side, (Her killer side) said that 'the bitch _amputated _you without your _consent._ Kill her while she's vulnerable. Like she hurt you when you were vulnerable. Nana fearfully shook away this thought, trying to concentrate on her 'angelic' side, which dominated the main section of her personality. _It _said that forgiveness was the best way of moving on, and besides, wasn't Lucy _different _now? Besides, Nana didn't really have the heart to kill the object of her sexual attraction.

When the older Diclonius was done her sobbing, she felt...almost _cleansed._ She felt that she now had the courage to tell Nana her true feelings. Lucy took a deep breath and started to speak in a shaky voice, horrifying her inner 'evil' Lucy. ' Nana, I...didn't mean to do what I did that day...can you ever forgive me?'

Nana finally wrestled over control from her inner demon and relented, finally forgiving Lucy's brutal attack, ' I...forgive you.' The two girls hugged once more, quite relieved that this huge gulf in between them was finally bridged. _Now _the skeleton of the bridge needed concrete. Lucy started putting it on first, ' There's...There's something I want to tell you Nana...' Lucy's face turned a deep shade of red as she stuttered out the words. 'I- I really like you...' These words hit Nana's chest like a brick, causing her to slightly stagger backwards. So...Lucy liked her too? It was almost _too good _to be true. Despite their love/hate relationship, Nana had always hoped ( in her wildest dreams) that Lucy would actually be mutual with her feelings of attraction. Now it was a reality. She _had _to find out if Lucy really meant it in the way she _hoped _she meant it.

'H-how do you like me, Lucy chan?'

Lucy turned a deep scarlet at this and said, 'Well...I...I' Lucy wrestled with her tongue for a few seconds more before spitting out those magic words. 'I'm sexually attracted to you...' Lucy lowered her head, unable to meet Nana's gaze. Nana's gaze was actually one of relief. Her red eyes shone with excitement as she said enthusiastically, ' Me too! I had some feelings toward you too, Lucy chan, do you think-

Nana realized that she was jumping the gun a little. She recoiled a bit and stared awkwardly at the floor, averting her gaze from Lucy's eyes. The two girls sat silent for a moment, contemplating this new revelation in their lives. Lucy thought what it would mean to Kouta. Nana _also _thought about how it would affect her and Kouta. After all, the two seemed _destined _for each other. Could their little affair ruin everything Lucy built up?

Lust overcame Lucy. Her primal instincts took over as she grabbed Nana by the waist and French kissed her. Nana's lips were _really _soft, like two delicate _budding_ roses pressing against Lucy's full grown ones. Nana was surprised at the advance at first, but she came to accept Lucy in her mouth. Their tongues twirled together like two ballet dancers in a frenzied pas de deux. Lucy's face turned scarlet when she realized what she was _doing._ They've come this far...maybe it was time to let nature take its course. As long as Kouta didn't find out, everything would be okay...Lucy thrust her hands down into her skirt and desperately fingered herself, twirling the folds of her labia in ecstasy as saliva started to drip from the two girls' passionate kiss...


	2. Chapter 2

Lucy fumbled for Nana's collar, trying to grip the buttons in her ecstasy. In what seemed like an eternity, she finally unbuttoned Nana's black schoolgirl top. With trembling hands, she slowly removed Nana's clothes, revealing black lace panties and bra with a _garter belt._ This little bit surprised Lucy, as she always thought of Nana as sort of a goody two shoes who only dressed in what her 'papa' gave her.

'_She must have been rummaging through Yuka's clothes...'_ Thought Lucy. Her breathing quickened as she pinned Nana down on to the futon, never once detaching her lips from Nana's. 'Lucy chan...' Nana was clearly excited now. Her hands were _also _thrust down into her panties and playing with her twat. Part of this felt so...so wrong. Lucy had rendered her now lover a quadriplegic, and now here she was, making love to her...well, love _did _come in the strangest places and times. Somehow in Nana's mind ( which was substantially scarred, no matter how bright and bubbly she was) Lucy substituted her 'papa'. She was the last of her kind along with Nana, the intimacy suddenly didn't seem so wrong anymore. Wasn't it only _natural _for you to 'do it' with the last of your race? Even if it was the same sex? The loneliness and emptiness inside the two girls could only be filled by one another. Lucy was as close to the only thing Nana had something in common with in the world...Nana hugged Lucy tight, pressing her own sex against the soft mound of Lucy's. She couldn't take it anymore. In a savage display of lust, Nana literally _ripped off _Lucy's skirt and clothes, while planting wet kisses around the sexy black ribbon around Lucy's neck.

The two were now only clad in panties and bras. Not wanting _those _annoying garments to get in the way, the two panted in anticipation as they took off their remaining barriers between their union. Lucy's sex was smooth and hairless, reminding Nana of two soft tulips pressed together in a cute, yet seductive way. She bent down and started to pleasure Lucy, swirling her tongue around the folds of her labia and deep into her clit. Lucy actually tasted like...like strawberries? It was more sweet than tangy, in fact it reminded Nana of honey! Lucy tried to suppress a shriek of lust that came out as a strangled little whimper as Nana's tongue went deeper and deeper into her womanhood.

Her climax was coming soon. It was rushing through her body in a sweet torrent, threatening to make Lucy's snatch explode at any time.

Lucy couldn't take it anymore. She took hold of Nana's soft pink hair and let out a soft moan as her juices flowed freely out of her. Eagerly licking her Lucy's essence, Nana masturbated as she licked away every last drop of nectar from Lucy sweet vagina.

Surprisingly, Lucy's orgasm lasted more than a _minute _before she stopped and sighed in pleasure. Her juices had completely drenched the floor and Nana's face, giving her hair a sexy wet look. '_Diclonius__ orgasms last an awfully long time...' _thought Lucy a little mistily, ' _This is actually my first time coming so much...even more than when __Kouta__ and I- _Lucy stopped her train of thought, worried that the guilt of screwing somebody _other _than Kouta would destroy the moment... Lucy's hands were quite busy at the moment, caressing Nana's head and absentmindedly fingering her own honeypot. She suddenly had an idea for pleasuring Nana back. Lucy shyly curled up her legs and touched Nana's clit with her _feet._ Nana's eyes opened wide. She gave a great gasp of excitement, imploring Lucy to use her creamy and well shaped foot to explore her nether regions.

Acknowledging Nana's silent request, Lucy flexed her toes and inserted her foot all the way up to the middle of her smooth instep in Nana's clit. Tenderly swirling her foot and using her big toe to play with Nana's pussy, Lucy suddenly exploded _again, _surprising herself just at _how often _a non-Silpeit diclonius could have so many consecutive orgasms... Lucy snapped back to reality when she felt Nana drench her foot in her own juice, giving her foot a filmy cover that dripped off luxuriously as Nana let go of her explosion. Curious to see what Nana _tasted _like, ( Nana seemed to enjoy Lucy's juices a _lot.)_ She furtively used her finger to swipe off a sample from her instep and licked it.

Well, this was a surprise. The young diclonius tasted _tangy._ Not in an unpleasant way though- it almost had the slightly bite and sweetness that balanced out ripe cherries so well...

Lucy decided it was time to end their little tryst, as she could vaguely hear Kouta and Yuka clearing up the dishes with Mayu. She whispered to Nana, ' We can continue this. Just as long as Kouta doesn't find out...' Nana seemed a little disappointed that their session had to end so quickly.

'Lucy chan, just a little more? Please...?' Nana's eyes looked imploringly at Lucy's breasts. They weren't too big, they weren't too small. They weren't as undeveloped as Nana's. The main quality to them was that seemed to defy _gravity,_ perking themselves at a perfect angle, complemented with soft, light pink nipples that surprisingly stood out a little on Lucy's pale skin.

Lucy perked up her ears to hear the outsider's progress with the dishwashing. It usually took them 10 minutes to clean up everything, so... Lucy gave Nana a seductive smile and nodded. Nana gave a happy little 'ah' and hugged Lucy close to her, twirling her tongue around the smooth contour of Lucy's breasts. She stroked Lucy's perfectly shaped assets with her delicate artificial little fingers. As much as she knew this was _really wrong_ screwing the girl she had sworn to get revenge on,( even though she forgave her,) the pleasure was just _too much _to pass up. Nana thrust her hand into her pussy, frantically sawing away to seesaw herself closer to her orgasm...When Nana's tongue finally reached Lucy's soft pink nipple, she gave a gasp of pure ecstasy and felt her orgasm shoot through her like a sweet bullet, covering the floor in even more of their love juices. The two girls lay in each other's embrace, ending the encounter with a sleepy, but still passionate kiss. As their tongues were doing another lazy dance with one another, the unthinkable happened. _Kouta_came in asking what Nana was doing.

'Nana, what are you-

Kouta stopped in his tracks and gazed at the two voluptuous girls sharing a kiss naked. A million thoughts ran through Kouta'smind, such as how

could Lucy _do _this? And what did the bullets do to her _brain?_ The two girls were mortified. Nana jumped up like an alligator clamp was on her

ass, Lucy just stared apologetically at Kouta, her face turning into a tomato with embarrassment and guilt. 'Kouta, I- I...'

Yuka came in to see what all the commotion was about, giving a little gasp when she saw Lucy and Nana butt naked on a wooden floor _drenched _

In-in...Yuka didn't even want to _think _about what had taken place...

'Lucy! What happened to you!? Why did you- why-' Kouta was at a loss for words. He _knew _that Lucy was _very _messed up inside, but he didn't

Didn't know that she and Nana would take out their sexual frustrations on each other...

Lucy gave a great sob and snatched her clothes, propelling herself out of the front door and into the night. Nana _also _gave little noises of

mortification and followed Lucy out into the night, most likely _not _going where Lucy was running off to.

The shock was too much for Kouta and Yuka. Mayu was busy outside feeding Wanta, so she mercifully didn't have to witness this awkward

Scene. There was only one word running through Kouta's head as he tried to collect his unruly thoughts.

_Why?_


	3. Chapter 3

Salve For a Bloody Rose, Continuation

Note: I have tweaked around my writing style _ever _so slightly to make everything more coherent. Hope it doesn't affect the story negatively in any way. (It's too fucked up to untie the stupid _STUPID OOC-ness I made now….what was I thinking!?)_ Anyhow, please review and don't flame. If you feel the need to flame, flame _constructively._

And nicely if possible…..if 'nice' flaming even exists….

CHAPTER THREE, LUCY'S DECISION

Lucy's drenched hair was plastered rather unattractively over her forehead, caused by the pouring rain that threatened to drown her.

She stared blankly into space and tried to rationally recount the events that had just transpired.

'_Step one, I went into proverbial 'rehab' at Kouta's for several weeks, step two, something inside my head snapped, step three, I got it on with Nana.'_

She laughed hoarsely at this.

'_Haha. Get it on. It's more like coerced rape. I bet she's feeling rather violated right now….'_

She brushed a strand of reddish pink hair out of her soaking forehead and heaved a heavy sigh. She had been crying for over an hour now. (Was it an hour? Or was it two? Didn't really matter.)

She thought about many things, primarily focusing on how a rash decision probably confirmed Kouta's inner thoughts about her being a nutter.

A rash decision.

It seemed rather premeditated to _her._ Like they said, you didn't _become _gay, you were _born _gay.

That would mean she was one confused bisexual who was now torn between (frankly and honestly) doddering Kouta and innocent Nana.

'She's thirteen, for fuck's sake.' Lucy said to no one in particular.

She could literally feel a small artificial lake building up in her pants. She should have caught the last minute 'storm warning' on the weather channel before she bolted out the door.

Some thunder cracked through the air, strangely lengthening her train of thought as opposed to cutting it off abruptly.

She remembered Nana's pretty delicate face the day they met at the graveyard. (which was incidentally, where she was sitting right now. She wondered absentmindedly if there were any traces of Nana's original limbs in the forest.) She finally had an epiphany.

She was _jealous _of Nana at the time, jealous of her blissful unawareness of her own misery-jealous at her blind servitude she called a purpose.

At least she _had _a purpose.

'_I'm just a wandering killer. A regular Cassie and Butch without the Butch. How utterly productive.'_

Still, she had felt a slight tinge of attraction the day Nana had tried to intercept her, however twisted the way she expressed it was.

She _knew _at that exact moment in time that she could not have had Nana, _ever._ She had stuffed those lingering feelings from the past into the bulging and rotting box that was her psyche and attacked her mercilessly, like the saying said, 'The fox couldn't reach the grapes, so therefore, he implied that the grapes were sour.' She had probably taken this saying into an extreme context and (literally) ripped apart her subject of desire.

What _was _it that made her feel so alienated towards Nana?

'_That's just great. I'm psychoanalyzing myself in the rain. I'm really Freud now._'



She suddenly took a peek into her rotted treasure chest of psyche and let some proverbial mold flow out.

The girl covered with bandages inside her head told her some things….

'_She'll only giggle and ridicule you if you say that you like her.'_

'_You're a cold blooded killer with no concept of 'love' in any form. Hell, you KILLED the closest thing you had to a FRIEND'S DAD AND SISTER. So really, don't delude yourself. You cannot love and never will. Why not keep killing then? That little pink haired bitch is mocking you. She's trying to take away your freedom. Don't tell me you find her ATTRACTIVE, because A. big dangerous and slightly retarded Lucy is scary to pretty innocent little Nana, and B. She seems rather happy, something YOU don't have. Don't you feel pissed at this?'_

She remembered she had told the creepy little bandaged beast floating in the darkness the following:

'_I could go back to the laboratory with her and possibly get in a joint experiment with her- some companionship perhaps? I can convince her to run away with me…. either way, I could potentially live a good life with her. I'm too much of a burden to Kouta….and he probably hates me for killing the better half of his family. I don't want to kill her. Can't we just talk this over? Please? I just want peace in my life.'_

The little bandaged shadow had moved into her face, almost close enough to kiss her.

'_Don't idle dear Lucy, and don't kid yourself. She wouldn't want to become friends with an emotionless bitch like you, let alone start a romantic relationship. Remember, the whole world is your enemy. You are the 'queen bee' designed to eradicate everything and start over with your own race. We wouldn't want you to be dawdling away in solitary confinement, would we?'_

She remembered the utter _vividness _of the rotting breath that spewed out of the bandaged shadow's mouth. It had hissed, '_What gives her the right to live in ignorant bliss while you suffer?'_

'_But-_

'_No buts, dear Lucy, or should I say, Kaede? You got it all wrong, putz, I'M Lucy, and you're weak little Kaede who gets so many boo boos because of her inability to be more…..assertive.'_

'_Fuck you, stop that right now. I don't want you anymore….you have made my life a living hell.'_

'_You said that last part with a little bit of hesitation, Kaede. YOU and I are the same. There is no split personality. Kaede is Lucy, and Lucy is Kaede. I appear because you NEED somebody to keep tabs on your wounded conscience.'_

'_That's not true.'_

'_Oh, but it IS. I have protected you from all harm and THIS is what I get? Denial and a 'fuck you?' I am your armor dear Kaede. You WILL gather up your will to hurt that little bitch because she has a life that you were denied.'_

'_That I was denied….'_

'_That's right. She's living happily and you're a suffering schizophrenic. PULEEZE._

'_I never thought of it that way.'_

'_That's what I was saying in the first place, you dumb cow. Get the fucking crust out of your ears and LISTEN to me.'_

'_I give up then. I don't really know what to do….'_

'_Just give the reins over to me, and I'll handle it. As long as I'm around, you needn't suffer, and I guaran-fucking- tee that you'll never be happy living your fairytale life with her. Pfft. Like that's even possible. She's sitting there, all smiling , pretty, and yapping in that annoying voice. Don't you just want to fucking RIP HER APART? LIMB TO LIMB?'_

'_You're right….her voice IS grating on my nerves….'_

'_Her smile laughs at you, laughs at your PREDICAMENT. LET ME IN NOW!!'_

Kaede was pushed aside by the bandaged Lucy and then….the rest was history.



Lucy breathed a shivering sigh of relief and felt hot tears run down her cheeks again. She found that she had a goofy looking smile on her face from (finally) figuring out the tangled mess that was the inner workings of her brain.

'_Fine brain, you've gone through more than enough probing today. I'll just close the lid and stop prodding you….'_ Lucy squinted and let the tears run down her cheeks. Though she had figured out the _reasons,_ she still couldn't put her finger on whether to choose Kouta or Nana.

Or both. Both would be _very _nice.

But _does _Kouta even love her? Was that kiss they shared just out of pity on his part?

'_Probably. I'm a self pitying murderer that sits in the rain like a pedophiliac waiting for a little child.'_

Lucy moved her legs a little and gave a small _tsk _when she found out her ballet flats were reaching a dangerously high tide. She suddenly felt the rain stop….

'Lucy?'

She almost fell down the cemetery steps in her startled reaction, but regained her composure and spun her head around.

Kouta was standing there with a passive and unreadable look on his face. He was carrying a large umberella.

'_Yup. That would explain why the rain stopped all of the sudden. Thank God for good generous Kouta….'_

'Is this a good time?' Kouta asked, immediately feeling immensely stupid after the question.

Lucy said nothing and nodded slightly. Kouta sat down beside her, oblivious to the fact that as soon as he sat down, a his underpants filled up like a water balloon.

'Erm….' Kouta was looking rather constipated now, scrunching up his face ever so slightly at the awkward situation that just took place at the Kaede in.

'No need to mince words. Just spit it out.'

'Alright, _why?'_

'I honestly don't know myself, but I'll explain it the best I can.'

The absence of the sun hid Lucy's tomato red face as she explained her motives in almost the _exact _order she figured them out in her head. Thankfully, Kouta's face did _not, _in fact, register any trace of disgust or anger, but instead took on a look of sympathetic understanding.

And slight befuddlement, as his eyebrows raised every now and then when she talked about her sexual orientation.

'I….could see why you would turn to girls….sort of….' Kouta trailed off and broke eye contact with Lucy.

'Not to excuse you by any means from my dad and sister's….' Kouta looked for something a little more delicate to supplement 'murder', but the justice mongering part of him _spat _out, 'murder, but I can understand the trauma you experienced after _possibly _losing the only male companion you had in the world. Of course….I _could _be wrong….' He trailed off again and looked into Lucy's red eyes.

His voice shook a little when he reopened his old scar, but he kept it under reasonable grips.

'All I wanted was to find _peace, _one way or another. I didn't want to kill again, I _really _didn't.'

'I have forgiven _Kaede and Nyuu, _so just let those bygones be bygones. You snapped because of….that….'

'_Lucy.'_ She said dejectedly. It was funny, calling that bandaged alter ego in her head the name she had been called by for so long. From what she had heard from the tidbits of information that was whispered around during her time in the laboratory, 'Lucy' was her natural drive, a _reverse _conscience to be more precise, imprinted into her instincts.

'_Like a shark that naturally eats other fish alive. I'm a shark that wants to be vegan. Haha.'_

'Right.' Kouta shifted uncomfortably on the steps. The rain didn't seem to want to let up, as another crack of thunder echoed through the sky.

'Here we are, sitting in the middle of a _hurricane._'

'Yes, a _hurricane.'_ Lucy parroted distantly.



Lucy finally wracked up the courage to ask.

'How's Nana doing back at….' She wanted to say home, but instead, ' The Kaede Inn?' came out.

'Oh, _her.'_ Kouta wriggled ever so slightly at this. 'She's ummm….refusing to talk to _anyone. _She just stays in her room and _cries….'_

'Like always.' He added, in a weak attempt to inject some lightheartedness into the news.

'Yuka?'

'She's….kind of mad about the erm….._mess _you two made….tell m-me….' Kouta's face was turning a shade of puce now.

Lucy inwardly giggled at Kouta's schoolboy tendencies to turn embarrassed at the slightest suggestion of sexual innuendo, but kept a straight face.

'What?'

'Are….are….diclonius fluids washable?' He almost said the last part in a strained whisper.

Lucy said nothing a looked at the ground. They now resembled two tomato headed humanoids growing from the cracks of the staircase in some kind of strange mutation from the pollutants in the rain.

'I guess….not then. Yuka's having considerable trouble….you know….' Kouta almost had his head turned a full 90 degrees away from Lucy, not wanting to see her reaction.

'No. It's thicker and more viscous than a normal human's. It'll eventually dry up and possibly _chip away?'_

She could have sworn she heard a small whimper from Kouta as he said this, followed by a sudden jerk of the canopy-like umbrella.

'Anyways, I think Nana really misses you. If I'm not mistaken, I think she likes you too.' Kouta said in an almost hyper speed yammer. Something felt heavy in his heart as he said this. Although he kept reminding himself time and time again that the impossibly beautiful horned girl sitting next to him was his father and sister's killer, he couldn't help but feel _love _towards her.

It wasn't just _any _love either. It was a sort of _relieved _love in a sense, the type one felt when recovering something very dear to them. He frequently had dreams about his quirky pink haired childhood friend _before _his suppressed memories were awakened. She had always seemed so _familiar _to him in those dreams, he always felt this….feeling of fuzzy nostalgia whenever they had conversations in those dreams. When he woke up, he would have felt this bittersweet feeling of loss simmering in his heart that would most likely last for several hours, often lingering all the way into the early afternoon, at which point he would brush off the feeling as a simple projection of his ideal girl and attribute it to his innate lack of relationships with the girls at his school.

He had almost been _relieved (_he felt quite guilty as he thought about this, picturing the mangled remains of his father and sister thrashing in their respective graves.) when he found out that 'ideal girl from the hazy forest in his dream was, in fact, real. Also real was the fact that _she _was the one who caused the death of his kin. But that was beside the point. (cue more thrashing) Despite all her visible flaws, _Kaede _was still the sweet, insecure girl that he had befriended so many years ago, so was cute and clueless Nyuu. _Lucy _was the one he hated, and the one that was responsible, so ergo,( he pictured his mind as a calculator now) If 'Lucy' _stayed _in her 'Kaede' state( which was manifested itself rather consistently ever since her confession to him on the staircase.) he could love her with no guilt in his mind.( Cue some quieting of the thrashing.)

'Can I call you Kaede from now on?'

Lucy was rather startled when he said this, but felt a pleasant tingle go down her spine as he said this.

'_He's accepting me. By God, he's forgiven me!'_

On one condition, '_If I keep that bandaged little freak under wraps. Yes. That's right-as long as SHE fades away, I'll lose my instinct to 'kill and conquer.' Yep. Score one for Kaede. It'll take some getting used to though….'_

'I haven't been called Kaede for the _longest _time, not since…._grade school.'_ She said this last bit quietly, remembering her bullying at the hands of those vicious little boys who used her little dog as a sandbag.



'Lucy was the name they gave to you at the lab. Why keep that memento of suffering?'

_Kaede _smiled and decided, 'I'll get rid of 'Lucy' once and for all then. That little fuck in my head isn't going to run my life any longer.'

To her surprise, the 'little fuck' didn't even protest when she said this. This strangely disturbed her a little, but she kept her flow.

She tossed away the namesake of her evil alter ego and suddenly heard an almost _muting _in the rain.

'Yes, you can call me that. Kaede….' She felt the words on her tongue. It certainly felt less evil than the almost gothic twinge of 'Lucy'.

'Shall we go home then? We can sort things out there, Kaede.' Kouta smiled warmly and stood up, a literal downpour cascading down from his jeans. He held out his hand, ' I'll always be there for you Kaede, don't ever forget that. You'll always be my best friend.' Feeling a little strange after he said this, '_Best friend? Isn't that a little mild for the moment?'_

'_Yes, but she still has to figure out whether she likes YOU or Nana. To be or not to be, that is the question.'_

He suddenly felt smooth soft skin entwine with his hands and walked home with Kaede in a daze. The rain still beat down- (no clichéd sun peeking out of the billowing clouds for them!) creating oceans in potholes and roaring down depressingly, accompanied by a good measure of gusting cold air from time to time, bringing a whole new definition to the word, 'soaking wet.'

For some reason though, the two felt nice and dry.

There was an awkward silence that pervaded the Kaede Inn in the week that followed. Nobody dared utter a peep about the 'incident' that happened one 'that day'. Kouta and _Kaede _had made their amends and were living comfortably together, though with some degree of awkwardness.

Kaede however, had grown to a level of emotional intimacy with Nana that she had never thought possible. Through night after night of Tete a tete talks and sorrowful amendments, Nana had finally _begun _to understand Kaede's motives.

It comforted her somewhat that it was _Kaede _she had had sex with and that it was _Kaede _that was starting up a skeleton of a formal relationship with her.

Kouta had full knowledge of their relationship and kept rather quiet about it, fearing that 'Lucy' might come out again as a product of simple agitation.

Of course, Kaede was resolute about keeping her evil alter ego under wraps. She had even promised to try her very best to keep the (admittedly ) dimwitted 'Nyuu' under her thumb.

So far so good. One week without any disturbances from her alternate personalities.

However, there was one slight problem that was quite overlooked during the chaotic events that occurred.

Lucy and Nana were illiterate.

They didn't know how to do math.

And to plop the cherry on the proverbial cake, they had no concept of using modern technology.

To remedy the problem , Kouta and Yuka signed them up for online courses.(after giving them a crash course in how to use computers.) Much to Lucy's utter chagrin and embarrassment, she had to start from the lowest level of education, which was a concept known as 'grade one.'

Lucy and Nana were given their own laptops, (courtesy of reaching _deep _into Yuka's family's pockets.) in order to insure utmost convenience for their admittedly embarrassing situation.

Kouta, Yuka, and Mayu were rather astonished at the quick learning rate the two dicloniuses possessed. They had literally sped all the way through to the fourth grade curriculum in a mere two weeks, suggesting that they would eventually catch up to the two university students in a year or less, considering the rising difficulty of the work.



Another nasty little problem reared its head once the whack-a-mole of Lucy and Nana's education issues were whacked.

Poor Mayu was caught in a rather compromising situation in when she was caught _doing _things with Nana's panties, to which she ran to her room and locked herself in for a whole entire day.

Yuka later deduced with minimal effort that Mayu had a hopeless crush on Nana.

The raven haired girl kept to herself most of the time, giving very little chance for the rest of the house mates to effectively communicate with her.

Yuka almost _counted _off the various signs she was so blind to.

First, Mayu almost always lowered her voice considerably when Nana was near, complemented by a bright red that always enveloped her face.

Secondly, Yuka had almost _always _found that some of Nana's sleep wear and undergarments had tiptoed over into Mayu's closet. She had dismissed it before as a simple organizational slip on her own part, but she had always failed to grasp the _consistency _with which they materialized.

Thirdly, she had found some girly love confessions to no one in particular crumpled to oblivion in Mayu's waste basket. Yuka felt a pang of guilt for giving into the temptation of reading them, but sheesh, _did _she have to use _her _Hello Kitty pink stationary?

Yuka and Kouta discussed this while rolling up Gyoza to be wrapped up for the next day's lunches.

'We've found ourselves in a rut here.' Yuka said quietly, silently setting the consistent volume for the entire conversation.

'Tell me about it. We've got a love triangle going on in the inn….'

'A love _square _if you're included.' Yuka said rather with a pouty voice. She still harbored feelings for Kouta, but she had _partially _accepted the Kouta would never reciprocate her romantic feelings for him.

Partially.

'_Baby steps man, baby steps.'_ She thought deliriously as she ran through this thought.

'Well….I haven't talked to Lucy-er Kaede in a rather long time…. She spends all her time studying these days.'

'Don't give me that shit Kouta, you _know _what happened two days ago.'

'What?' Kouta's reddening face was giving away his secret.

'That 'long conversation' in your room with her?'

'We just kissed for….for a long time!!' Kouta sputtered, not unlike a broken lawnmower.

'_Sure.'_ Yuka smirked at Kouta's discomfort.

'You do realize she's flitting back and forth from you to Nana and back, right?'

'I know that.'

'Doesn't that _bother _you in the least?'

'N-n-not at all.' Strangely enough, Kouta didn't really mind Kaede's travels from him to Nana. He hoped she would eventually _decide_ and go _him._ It wasn't too farfetched to compare his situation to choosing from the last two squares from a scratch and win lottery card.

'I feel kind of left out, you know.' Yuka was clearly enjoying herself now. She would stop this once Kouta the lawnmower eventually broke down.

'It's-it's we used condoms at least….' Kouta realized his mistake and wanted to gut himself with the kitchen knife he was holding.

'Ha. So you admit it.'

'I want to commit Hara Kiri right now.'

'Don't. We still need a cyclic cook's assistant here. We can't have you disembowel yourself so soon.'

Kouta gave a heavy sigh and stuffed some ginger inside the powdery dough.

Yuka lowered her voice again, 'You do know that Mayu's got a crush on Nana, right?'

Kouta raised an eyebrow, '_That's _peculiar. She's never shown any signs of it.'



'You're always so _oblivious.'_ Yuka heaved an almost silent groan and wrapped up an end of the dumpling.

'Aren't you going to talk to Lu-erm _Kaede _about whether she's going to commit to you?'

'I don't really know….she and Nana seem quite suited for each other.' Kouta said in a small voice.

'That _just _like you, never having a backbone. Take some _initiative _for once! Be aggressive!'

The inner Yuka was screaming now, screeching and caterwauling, '_He's mine!!WHY ARE YOU DOING THIS!! TRYING TO BE THE MODERATER NOW EH!? I WANT HIM AND DON'T YOU FORGET IT!'_

'_Shut up.' _Rational Yuka intoned coldly. '_You know my pursuit of him is a lost cause, so just can it.'_

Inner Yuka shut up.

' C'mon, you've been like….practically in love with her your whole life! Can't you….' She saw the downcast look on Kouta's face.

'I just can't get the fact out of my head that she _killed _my father and sister. Even if it was done by her alter ego. I just can't picture myself living in marital bliss with Kaede. It would be….' Kouta tried to search for the right word.

'awkward.'

Yuka put a finger on her chin and smeared some flour on it in the process. 'I _guess _you have a point there….but _still,_ don't you want to start a life with the _literal girl of your dreams?_ And I stress the word _literal?'_

Kouta stuffed some chives into his already bloated Gyoza, ' I can live with _Kaede, _but the prospect of _Lucy _popping up at some random moment chills me to the bone.'

'She's learning. Lucy _almost _never pops up now.'

'_Almost. _Remember that incident two weeks before?'

'Don't remind me, but Kouta- she's trying her best. Can you at least _try _and snag her?'

Kouta sighed, rather deflated. The turmoil filled battle in his mind was being perpetually won by the 'pro Kaede side' rather than the 'freaked out about Lucy and worried that she will go crazy and dismember someone close to me side.' It was a seventy percent win, still shadowed by the lurking little 30 percent of the opposing side.

That 30 percent was something he would have to overcome before Lu-whoops. _Kaede_ decided that he didn't want her after all and run away with Nana.

A new sort of macho determination coursed through Kouta's veins as his brow furrowed slightly. Who did that pink haired little 13 year old jailbait think she was, stealing _his _Kaede from him? He would show her who was the better man….well….the better person. He would _demolish _that remaining annoyance of a 30 percent and-

'Kouta, why are you spaced out like that?'

'Oh! Errr….nothing! It's nothing. I've just decided that I'll try a little harder and snag Kaede before Nana swoops her away.'

'That's more like it.' Inner Yuka bubbled up to the surface like a pimple now.

'_NOW YOU'VE DONE IT!! WE'LL NEVER HAVE KOUTA NOW!! YOU BITCH!! YOU BITCHBITCHBITCH….'_

'_Like I said, shut up.'_ Yuka said, mentally picturing herself bashing inner Yuka's head in.

'Well, it's quite out of context on my part,' (Yuka said this to quell the festering Inner Yuka) 'But I actually _hope _that Mayu will somehow catch Nana's attention and draw her away from Lucy. By the way, have you even _noticed _that Lucy is sharing _a lot _of 'spilling the beans' talks with Nana these past months? _Especially _when they've started their independent learning programs? You'd better fill in the part of the 'personal therapist' before Lucy starts regularly seeing Nana the shrink.'

This time, Yuka's _own _stomach knotted as opposed to her crazed other self.

'_Hey, what AM I doing? I'm completely out of character here….I've partially accepted Kouta's love for Lucy, PARTIALLY. Why am I so comfortable with it?'_

'_Because you want him to like you and not despise you. You subconsciously want to worm into his mind as the 'helpful girl' that prevails SO much in anime stereo types. You know? The best friend under his nose the whole time he didn't even notice but finds out is the right one for him in the end?'_

Yuka swallowed hard and held back her fear.


End file.
